


Silence Study

by Das_Silberschlussel



Category: Study Series - Maria V. Snyder
Genre: All knowing Self Insert, Alternate Universe, Ari and Janko are def sleeping together, Cluless self insert, Gen, Its a dream but not a dream, Other, Self Insert, Spoilers for all of the books
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-07
Updated: 2019-08-07
Packaged: 2020-08-11 01:16:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,614
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20145172
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Das_Silberschlussel/pseuds/Das_Silberschlussel
Summary: When the Key falls asleep in her own bed after reading the all of Mara V Snyder's books concerning Ixia and Sitia she somehow wakes up in the palace in Ixia before the books start in the timeline. She has to figure out how to work in this world while trying to determine if this is actually a dream and having incredibly specific knowledge of the future.





	1. Prologue: Before the dream

_The trouble with reading books before going to bed is that they inevitably come up in your dreams_.

Ultimately, this is what happened to me when I finally put down a book in the Study Series by Maria V Snyder and complained to my cat that I wanted to learn how to be an assassin or something. I would settle back on my pillow and let sleep claim me to a fantasy world where I could experience the sort of basic world where I could have a job and all of my needs like food and clothes and sleeping obtainable with out having to basically be an actual retail slave for my whole life.

This was the experience I had gotten used to as I devoured the books in my free time around said retail slavery – by the time I managed to put down the last book in the last trilogy I was starting my traditional griping with my cat about how I wanted to know what was going to happen with Liana Zaltana Icefaren and all of her cool powers. There was obviously some sort of mental mojo that I sent out into the world to try to convince Ms Snyder to add another trilogy that I could work my way through before falling back onto my pillow to maybe get some basic fanfic material to write my own Liana story as I drifted off to sleep.


	2. Why are assassins always so attractive?

I was pulled roughly to a standing position nowhere near a bed, let alone my bed, by two men in matching red and black clothing. My brain decided that the thing it was going to register was the fact that these two men were probably cops, only cops wore uniforms that were that sort of clean and straight.

There was no panic that I was being frog-marched around by cops...or at least not yet. Dreams were like that, they tended to keep the panic emotions carefully hidden away until it became a nightmare or something. Instead I was overcoming the hazy brain that comes with being woken up when you were in the middle of REM, I was starting to collect that I wasn't in my suburban apartment by the stonework in the walls. Now the minor panic was starting to build but it was being over ridden by the impressed feeling I was getting about my dreams finally stepping up the realism in something that wasn't just an indulgent sex dream.

A plot and realism – a girl could get spoiled like this.

“Hey, um, excuse me, officers?” I said to the two people moving me down the corridor. “Whats happening?”

No response was given from either of then, or at least no response that I actually heard as I started noticing the way the corridors were decorated: with some parts of the stonework visibly darker than the others, like they had been covered up by now missing paintings... and how everyone was actually wearing uniforms that were fairly similar in red, black and white with embroidered diamonds... just like in the books.

Slowly I was tarting to piece together what was happening, or at least the fact that compared to everyone else I was horribly horribly out of uniform – especially if I was actually in Ixia. Mental curses sent to my own brain about not fabricating me a uniform to help me blend in at the very least; but also a second hope that it wouldn't just manifest right away, I didn't need to dream about being executed for magic – where would the fun be in that?

“You know, I can walk on my own.” I told my guards to no real response as they turned me down yet another hallway. Two brick walls were carrying me around and part of me hoped it was just the dream logic that was keeping them from responding, extras weren't really supposed to talk, and if they did then there was usually something bad happening with your subconscious getting free and stuff.

They propelled me towards a door which the one on my right knocked on.

“Enter.” a voice from inside said, and somehow some part of my stomach dropped out, just where were these people taking me?

The room opened to an office that was full of both piles of paper and grey rocks. Even I could tell that I blanched as my eyes swept through the room starting at the floor and working my way towards the intimidating blue-eyed man sitting behind the desk. I gulped as quietly as I could to myself, if this was anything like I had been partially imagining for the past week and a half I had definitely had a different picture of Valek Icefaren – and also I was apparently going back to trilogy one Valek before he re-admitted to the whole Icefaren surname thing.

“Sir.” said my guard on the left in a voice that almost drew my eyes if I wasn't already staring at the Assassin that I had been thinking of for much longer than I would care to admit – regardless of heartmate status, “You told us to inform you if we found something suspicious.” The guard gestured to me and my obvious lack of uniform.

Valek barely even blinked.

I didn't know what my role here was, and as much as torture seemed like a thing I didn't actually want to experience, there was always that subconscious 'what if' thought that settled into my mind. What was with me and sexualizing intimidating men?

I vaguely heard the words he was saying to me, and guard on the right shook me a little before my eyes refocused. “Pardon?” I said weakly to the security chief that was now giving me the sort of glance that could freeze ice if given the chance. So that was what was meant by Valek's killing glance – I got it now.

“My apologies, Sir, I was lost in thought.” All of that time spent LARPing and otherwise roleplaying in pseudo-formal situations actually came in handy.

“I asked who you were and how you got into the castle.” Valek repeated.

I didn't know if I still had color on my face, but if I had, I didn't anymore.

“My name is Key, Sir, and I don't know how I got into the castle.” I wasn't about to spout out that I thought I was dreaming, but even I could tell that, although what I said was the truth Valek either didn't believe me or thought that I was withholding things – which technically I was. I mean I didn't even know if he actually was Valek or if this was some sort of sideways jaunt of a dream than anything real.

“Honestly, I think this a bit of a dream.” I said that quickly, not that I felt rushed or anything but since I had read the books so extensively and repeatedly I knew that I couldn't dodge a poison or googoo juice laced dart if Valek opted to get me with it. “I'd super appreciate getting some answers if you're willing.” I sent a prayer to my own brain that I could manage at least this much without some basic drooling the incredibly dangerous and attractive man on the other side of the room.

His icy stare kept looking into me like he was trying to sort through my thoughts, but he didn't have his magic left, especially if he was still behind that desk instead of Alora. I started to get uncomfortable, through both the silence that Valek wielded as well as any knife – and as a retail worker, silence wasn't really my forte, how do you sell random things to people if you have to keep quiet the whole time? And also the fact that the guards still held my rather small biceps.

“Sir?” my voice came out in a squeak before a nod caused the guards to bring me closer towards his desk.

“I'm sure you have questions, spies always have questions.”

“I'm not a spy, sir. I don't think I would be able to be undetected if I was a spy...I am in Ixia, right?” I didn't know the answer I was looking for, but also I was seriously hoping that I wouldn't get googoo juiced, who knew what I would be able to keep in in that situation. Perhaps this is what the quote meant when it said 'ignorance is bliss'.

He just looked at me, a blank expression, one of those silences that were wielded specifically to make the target speak more because of the need to fill the uncomfortable silence – something I was innately bad at not responding to. And in all honesty I was really only using the sir honorific, because it made sense, and I would prefer to not get on purpose murdered because I committed another infraction beyond just being outside of the Ixian uniform system.

“I've never been here before, I only read about it a whole lot. I'm really not sure where I am.” I had broken under the pressure. And honestly it was reasonable, since I knew I didn't have the composure to pull off an equally silent pointed look. “Seriously though, not a spy. I swear.”

“Sit down.” he said indicating the chair that shined with the inner fire of a principal's office chair. I felt deflated as I sat down and looked across the desk at him, I honestly couldn't think of anything that would help me get out of this mess that I apparently had dug myself into.

Gee thanks brain, you make great dreams -- please just tell me if he's gonna dart me or something.


End file.
